AFL must throw out the towel

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In greasy conditions or otherwise, players should not be allowed to use any item to alter the state of the ball.

It is the equivalent of ball tampering in cricket and should be dealt with harshly.

While lining up for his 500th career goal against the Demons on Saturday night, St. Kilda’s Stephen Milne used a towel supplied by a nearby club trainer to dry the ball. The umpire only asked the trainer to vacate the vicinity after the deed had been done.

Considered a part of the game open to umpire interpretation, this moment highlights the need for a law to either be written or clarified.

The game will suffer if such behaviour is not addressed immediately and we risk setting a dangerous precedent if it is allowed to continue. At no level of football should ball tampering become an accepted practice.

I am not suggesting Milne and St. Kilda be deducted a goal over the incident, nor am I calling the diminutive number 44 a cheat. On the contrary, Milne should be congratulated for becoming only the 50th man in VFL/AFL history to kick 500 goals. What I am suggesting is that this instance be looked at very closely by the game’s lawmakers and for a legitimate conclusion be drawn.

If law or interpretation deems tampering with the ball in such a way acceptable I would be surprised and saddened.

The Crowd Says (16) | Page 1 of Comments

I agree, either everyone has access to a towel or no-one. For me, no-one is the better option, rather than holding up play every time there is a set shot in the wet. If a guy wants to use his jumper or shorts, I’m fine with that.

I didn’t see the incident in question, but tend to agree that the practice should be wiped out. One further question for those who did see it, was Milne given more than the customary 30 seconds so he could clean the ball?

Cameron, the reason why I used this analogy is because ball tampering in cricket is so frowned upon – picking at a seam or using a mouth lozenge to shine the ball for instance. Using a towel in the AFL should be in this league of misdemeanours in my opinion.

Don’t worry I play cricket. I’m a medium pace bowler. Trust me, I get it. Milne did not rub the ball on an article of clothing – that would have been fine. The context was completely different when Milne used an external item to enable an easier shot at goal.

I agree with you Kit and it is a shame that it happened on the 500th goal of Milne.

Once again this shows that some of our umpires are not up to standard. The umpire in question should have immediately stopped the trainer when he handed the towel to Milne. Maybe he got caught up in the excitement of the moment.

don’t see the big deal as long as they don’t take all day, if they don’t have a towel they would use their clothes. i see rugby players do this all the time before a lineout so the ball is easier to throw.